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Regents OK schematic design for Kraus Building renovation

Regents OK schematic design for Kraus Building renovation

Plans to renovate the 101-year-old Edward Henry Kraus Natural Sciences Building took another step forward Thursday as the Board of Regents approved the project's schematic design.

The $120 million project calls for a deep renovation of the existing 183,000-square-foot building, plus a 62,000-square-foot infill addition within an exterior courtyard.

Completed in 1915, the Kraus Building currently houses the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology as well as the Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology. In 2018, both of those departments will be relocated to the Biological Science Building, which is currently under construction.

Views of the Kraus Building from the Diag currently (left) and after the proposed renovation. (Images courtesy of Architencture, Engineering and Construction)

The renovation and addition of Kraus will enable the School of Kinesiology to consolidate its programs and operations — currently in the School of Kinesiology Building, the Central Campus Recreation Building and other leased space — into one location inside Kraus. That location will be large enough to allow for the school's future growth.

Ballinger Architecture and Engineering designed the project.

The project will include architectural, electrical and mechanical work and will provide an average of 124 on-site construction jobs.

An artist's rendering of the Kraus Building's commons area after the renovation. (Image courtesy of Architencture, Engineering and Construction)

There will be a temporary loss of some adjacent parking spaces during construction, but there will be no permanent impact on parking. Construction is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2020.

Funding will be provided by the Office of the Provost resources.

The Board of Regents also authorized issuing bids and awarding construction contracts for the project.

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